CZ20003801A3 - Process for producing textile mats, textile mat and use thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

There is described a new method for making a fibre mat under the use of plant fibres, preferably from flax and hemp. The fibres are pre-treated and shortened, whereafter they are separated for establishing a fibre mass comprising single fibres with lengths within a desired interval. Hereafter, the fibre mat is produced by a dry-forming process as the fibres are oriented randomly in the fibre mat. The dry-forming process preferably takes place by using a former head which is placed above a vacuum box as the fibres are deposited on a former wire between these two elements. The plate is fixed as inter-fibre bonds are established between the single fibres. The inter-fibre bonds may be established with or without the use of binders. The formed fibre mats will be open and airy, but at the same time sufficiently stable and cohesive for handling. A field of application for the fibre mat will be isolation.

Description

Method of production of textile mats, textile mat and its use

Technical field

The present invention relates to a method for producing textile mats / coverings using plant fibers. More specifically, the invention relates to the use of flax and hemp fibers for the manufacture of textile mats, which are made using fibers that are shortened and separated and which are then used to make the textile mat. Vegetable fibers are used as a substitute for mineral wool fibers, wood fibers, wood cellulose, synthetic fibers, etc.

In addition, the invention relates to a textile mat produced by the method of the invention, as well as to the use of such a textile mat.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The use of vegetable fibers in the manufacture of textile mats is known. These mats were formed by carding the fibers. Then, an appropriate deposit or coating is formed and finally the reinforcement of the fiber of the web itself (needling) is carried out to produce the final textile mat. This method has several disadvantages. Thus, it would be necessary to have an exact degree of flax moisture with respect to flexibility or flexibility in order to carry out the needling process. However, the necessary dry conditions will result in the disintegration or disintegration of the flax fiber, causing dust formation and short fiber formation that could easily break away from the formed textile mat.

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The production of known carded textile mats causes the fibers to lie in separate bundles (hair) so that there is no strong bond between the individual layers of the textile mat. In addition, relatively long fibers are used, which will typically be between 100-150 mm, but may be up to 200 mm long. Linen and hemp textile mats are traditionally made from tow fiber, which is a by-product in the production of long fibers for carding and spinning or spinning. This is done in mills for rubbing / rubbing flax fibers. This process is expensive and difficult, and therefore the tow fiber along with the long textile fibers of plant fibers such as flax and hemp are relatively expensive. In addition, the known technique has high requirements for the quality of the raw materials, including the degree of dew / soak of the raw materials.

Flax plants may have a stem between 600 and 800 mm in length. The stem has firm bundles of fibers running from the root of the plant to its top. These fibrous bundles (fibers) are located most distantly in a given stem and in the interstice between the bundles there is a central straw, consisting of wooden cells, which, after exposure to the fibers, gives the so-called shives.

Cannabis plants have stems that are considerably longer than flax stems. They have a length of up to 2,000-3,000 mm. In principle, the stem of hemp is built in the same way as flax with the outermost bundles of fibers. Inwardly, there is a wood containing wooden cells (shives) consisting of short fibers of 0.5-0.6 mm (elementary fiber length).

In order to separate the flax fibers from the wood fibers in the stem, they must be subjected to dew or soaking, which is a microbiological process. To · ···· · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · ··· ·· ······· · _Φ «« traditionally takes place in the field with flax dew. With dew, hemicellulose and pectin bind together with the fibers and the wood parts are decomposed. The degree of dew is absolutely critical in the preparation of textile fibers for carding and spinning. Thus, the boundary between a well-dew-crimped fiber is very narrow. It is difficult to control or control this process because it will be essentially a biological process that determines quality.

According to the present invention, there is no same requirement for a specific degree of dew or soak. According to the process of the present invention, traditional soaking or controlled soaking, e.g. in water-containing enzymes, is therefore possible. It is thus possible to expose the fibers to the appropriate action and to use fibers from completely non-soaked to heavily soaked, depending on the intended use. It is therefore possible to use stalks that are not soaked, that have been soaked with dew in the field or that have been soaked by controlled soaking; After soaking and drying, the flax is subjected to a mechanical treatment to separate the fiber bonds from the shives. The resulting fibers may be shortened to produce the desired fiber lengths.

By slight dew or dipping and subsequent mechanical and possibly chemical treatment, it is possible to decompose the fiber bundles and to form individual fibers. Individual fibers can be used to produce more airborne products than is the case with fiber bundle products. However, it has been reported that the individual cell fibers formed are not suitable for the manufacture of textile mats by known methods of consolidating the fleece fibers (needling) because of their shortening to lengths which are unsuitable for carding.

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The present invention is particularly directed to flax and hemp fibers, but the invention may also be used in conjunction with other plant fibers with a structure corresponding to the fiber structure known in flax and hemp.

There is a desire to obtain a new method by which plant fibers, preferably flax and hemp fibers, can be used to produce textile mats which are not associated with the disadvantages of known carded or carbonized textile mats and which can also be used industrially in long series of products.

A method in which the carding and needle-punching process has been omitted has been previously proposed. Thus, WO 98/01611 discloses a method for producing a fibrous product, wherein the fibers are pretreated with a combination of dew / steeping and mechanical decomposition. The resulting fibers are then formed into the final product by a dry forming process. However, there is no accurate indication of sub-processes for providing fibers with properties that are desirable in the final product. In addition, the method described is based on the use of relatively long fibers, which may have a length corresponding to the fibers of the carding process. Such long fibers can cause difficulties in process steps forming part of the process. Furthermore, there is no guidance for harvesting the fibers in an effective manner for a suitable process step contemplated from the following processing.

The invention

It is thus the aim vyrr-ájezu show a method of manufacturing new uTHi ___ ^ --- t erxTTrřn mats show says 1 ct ^ _p: gslu_p_y ^ ^ k't-eUé'5V advantageous in providing vjájce n-W with a suitable quality. in a given way and which results in ·· ·· b · ·

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WO-A-9633306 discloses a heat insulating element which is 1 made of vegetable fibers and consisting of a non-woven fabric with a random three-dimensional structure. This document shows the use of very long fibers and with long fibers and thermoplastic fibers are used to provide bonding or bonding of fibers in nonwoven materials. As mentioned above, long fibers may cause difficulty in a given step of the respective method for laying the fiber element.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is therefore an object of the present invention to show a method of manufacturing a new type of textile mat and to show the partial processes which are advantageous in providing fibers with a quality adequate in the method and which result in

end products with desired properties. In addition, the object is to show a textile mat which is produced in this way and to show the specific use of such a textile mat.

The object of the invention is achieved by a method wherein the fibers are pre-processed during the crop harvesting by cutting and threshing, wherein the plant stalks are wholly or partially dew / steeped and then shortened and separated to form a fibrous mass containing predominantly individual fibers having 1 to 30 mm, where drying is optionally carried out to provide the desired moisture, wherein the fibers are randomly oriented according to how the mat is formed by a dry forming process and where the mat is bound, since inter-fiber bonds are at least partially established between the fibers these fibers are more or less fibrillated.

Thus, a pretreatment is introduced where the fibers are shortened and separated to form a fibrous mass comprising individual fibers with lengths within a desired interval with a length that is so short that they are not suitable for carding. The truncation can be carried out arbitrarily in an appropriate device, since the subsequent process does not require carding and therefore does not necessarily require a certain fiber length. The shortening takes place by spinning, which causes the individual fibers in the subsequent dry forming process to form a continuous web (nonwoven) which is cohesive without the need for a binder, since the fiber bundles slip into each other. Thereby inter-fiber bonds in the form of fiber-fiber bonds between individual fibers are determined. The carpet to be formed need not be needled and the dry forming process also takes place without steam bonding. So we are talking about a very simple procedure ·· • · · <

creating textile mats. The formed mat is airy and bulky and can be reinforced or compacted to the desired degree depending on the intended use. It will also be possible to add the binder in greater or lesser amounts depending on the desired use of the final product.

Traditional harvest of flax and hemp for textile production is underway plucking, which is slow and busy intensive method. After plucking, when Yippee the whole plant pulled out, is laid down aside for dipping. Further the stems are pressed into packages and sent to

processing factories. The seeds are torn off in a scouring mill and the straw is processed by laying the stalks side by side and processing them together in a technological processing plant.

In contrast to the aforementioned traditional harvesting by tearing or pulling, according to the invention pre-treatment / harvesting of flax can be introduced in an unconventional manner. This is done in flax by cutting whole plants, for example by laying them in miter cuttings, where the flax seeds are then threshed, preferably by a combine threshing machine. The stalks of flax lie for a reasonable period after the seeds are harvested, with dew or dipping to the desired extent. Thus, if non-wetted flax fibers are desired, flax straw is harvested immediately after threshing. The stems are collected for pressing or are collected by combined cutting and pressing.

Hemp is harvested by cutting off, eg by miter laying, in two or more rows. Thus, the first trimming may be such that the remaining stubble has a height of about 1 m and then mowing is carried out with a stubble about 0.2 m high. After cutting, the stalks of hemp lie for a reasonable period of time due to soaking. Then the stems are pressed into

. Fc fc fc fc fc fc fc fc bales and cut and dried prior to further processing to form single fibers as described above, e.g. by shortening and rubbing / rubbing in a hammer mill / crusher and subsequent separation on a coarse sieve (sifter), eg, a rotary coarse sieve.

Pre-treatment of the stems includes shortening and separation. In practice, it has been shown that the hammer mill is suitable for shortening and simultaneously scraping the stems. Alternatively, the stalks may be trimmed prior to hammer mill processing as described in connection with harvesting methods. It has been shown that it is possible to maintain high performance or capacity and uniform quality no matter how the stems are conveyed to the hammer mill. Thus, there is no need for slow feeding or side-laying of stems used in traditional flax screed mills.

Rubbing, i.e., the release of wood parts from fiber bundles / single fibers, is very effective when operating at a high mill speed. In this way, the stems are shortened so that the major portion of the fibers to be formed has a length of between 0.1 to 30 mm and preferably between 4 to 15 mm. This method of scrubbing or exposure to fibers under the weather is quite different from traditional scrubbing, where very long plant fibers are produced for carding and spinning.

Cleaning the shives from the fibers can be done with a rotary coarse screen or a sifter or similar device. In practice, it is difficult to clean the fibers completely from shives and fibrous dust. However, it will be possible to have a smaller portion remaining in the fibrous mass without compromising the quality of the fabric mat formed. Thus, the shives can be used to some extent in the subsequent manufacture of a textile mat.

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For some textile mats where it is desirable to use wetting of vegetable fibers, eg for a fibrous absorbent, further pre-treatment of the fibers is performed before forming the textile mat. This comminution can be carried out by boiling the fibers in water under pressure or by boiling in an extruder. In addition, the mats can be treated chemically, eg by adding the appropriate base to water. Then the formed fibers are washed and dried before being further used for dry forming. Alternatively, wet cleaning of the fibrous mass can also be performed in this manufacturing step. Thus, fibers that are cleaned through a sieve and pulverized can be conveyed to the hydrocyclone, thereby showing that a very large portion of the shives in the final pulp can be removed by cleaning. Thus, it has been shown that it is possible to produce pulp having a content of only up to 0.1% shives. Once the shives are removed, the strength of the subsequently formed textile mat increases, since the mat will contain more fibers for fiber bonding, since the textile mat contains more fibers per unit area, since the weight of (one) shives corresponds to the weight of a large number of fibers. In practice, it has been shown that the strength of the end product can be increased by cleaning it from shives in a hydrocyclone. Since the capacity (volume) of the hydrocyclone is low, it is advantageous to carry out the cleaning of the shives as dry as possible. Thus, the subsequent treatment / purification in the hydrocyclone will preferably take place in conjunction with processes wherein the fiber pretreatment involves wetting the fibers.

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The resulting fibers are then used to form the textile mat by a dry-forming process that substantially corresponds to the dry-forming process used in dry-forming paper.

The formed individual fibers will be more or less fibrillated, which increases the tendency of the fibers to be able to wind and coil into each other. This automatically results in the formation of inter-fiber bonds in the textile mat. Thus, it will not be necessary to add binders for certain applications. However, it will also be possible to add binders to be formed between the fiber bonds between the individual fibers. The outgoing textile mat will thus have a homogeneous cohesive structure over the entire thickness.

The binders which may be used may be organic binders, synthetic organic binders or natural binders. Polymers such as thermoplastics can be used as binders. Particularly in the formation of composite and high strength products where the fibrous layers (webs) formed can be said to be fiber reinforcements placed in a polymer matrix, relatively large amounts of binders can be used. Thus, up to 50% of binders relative to the end product can be used in such products.

The binders may also be provided in the form of synthetic fibers, e.g., bicomponent fibers consisting of polypropylene and polyethylene, polyester, vinyl, etc. In such a situation, the fixation of the layer will occur by heating up to the melting point of the plastic, thereby introducing the inter-fiber bonds. Examples of natural binders include starch and products

Lactic acid. Such binders may be added as appropriate part up to 5-15%.

Thus, the amount and type of binders to be added will depend on the intended use of the fabric mat being formed. Thus, the textile mat intended for the insulating mats will contain very little or no binder.

In contrast, for example, a composite layer having properties corresponding to those known from fibreboard and particleboard will contain larger amounts of binder (10-50%) and the binder and textile mat will undergo compression simultaneously with the introduction of the interfiber bonds. This creates a dense and solid layer or fleece.

In addition, it will be possible to vary the properties of the product formed by varying the fiber length in the product. Thus, for certain products, it will be advantageous for a portion, e.g. 10% or more, of the shives from the separation process to be fed to the dry forming process to form a more compact and stronger textile mat.

If airy and soft textile mats are desired, the shives are not added and at the same time no remarkable compression or firming of the dry layer is performed. In addition, vegetable fibers, preferably flax fibers, will be used for these airborne products, which are reasonably steeped so that, after shortening and separation, they contain many fibers which contribute to obtaining a cohesive textile mat which is also airy.

With the method according to the invention, textile mats can be made considerably cheaper than carded / needle-plied textile mats. The fibers can be formed into a textile mat by adding a very small amount of binder as compared to forming the corresponding textile. * 4 * 4 * 4 * 4 * 4 * 4 * 4 * 4 · 4 · 4 · 4 · 4 · 4 · 4 · 4 · 4 · 4 · 4 · 4 · 4 · 4 · 4 · 4 · 4 Thus, wood fibers typically have a length of between 1 to 3 mm, which is considerably different from the typical length of plant fibers, which will, as mentioned above, be in particular between 4 and 15 mm.

As mentioned, the textile mat can be made with or without the use of a binder. In the manufacture of textile mats for insulation purposes, the addition of a binder in the range of 0-15%, preferably 2-3%, will be sufficient to form a cohesive textile mat of flax and hemp fiber that is easy to handle. For comparison: a corresponding wood fiber insulation board will normally contain 15-20% binder, which increases the cost of the product.

As mentioned, textile mats can be made airy and soft by using dipped fibers which result in shortening / separation in many fibers. If the plant fibers are only slightly soaked or not soaked, many plant fibers will still be coherent in the fiber bundles. This gives a harder and coarser textile mat, since the formed fibrous mass will contain a relatively larger portion of the fiber bundles than the individual fibers.

The textile mat containing the fiber bundles will be less soft and dense. But the strength of the fibers in such a textile mat is greater. This makes it suitable for production where greater strength is required. By regulating the pretreatment in the form of a dipping step, optionally combined with a chemical and / or enzymatic treatment, it will therefore also be possible to influence the properties in the formed textile mat.

The length of the fibers will have in

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Thus, fiber properties can be combined depending on the field of application.

The fiber bundles will contain several individual fibers up to a maximum of 10-30 single fibers.

Textile mats will usually be made of fibers that are hydrophobic, since flax and hemp fibers are to a greater or lesser degree hydrophobic. Thus, the hydrophobic textile mat is formed using fibers which are processed only mechanically (not chemically). I.e. the stems are soaked for a shorter or longer period and dried to a water content of between 8-18%, preferably between 10-16%. The degree of hydrophobicity depends on the quality of the raw materials. The stronger the steeping, the lower the degree of hydrophobicity. The fibers can absorb moisture from the environment and release moisture again and be resistant to rot and mold attacks at normal atmospheric humidity.

Alternatively, it will also be possible to produce textile mats where the fibers have been made hydrophilic. It will thus be possible to pre-treat the fibers by wet grinding or by means of enzymes and washing and drying to further process the fibers into cellulose. This can be done by boiling in water under pressure or by boiling in extruders. Such pretreatment may be carried out with or without the addition of pulping chemicals such as sodium hydroxide.

For example, a textile mat according to this method can be used where there is a need for an absorbing effect, such as thin tissue papers, napkins, tissue paper, etc.

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The dry-forming process may allow the manufacture of a textile mat with a greater or lesser degree of compaction and a greater or lesser thickness. This will make it possible to produce textile mats with thicknesses of 2-5 mm and up to thicknesses of 2-300 mm or even thicker. Molded textile mats can be manufactured by compacting from a gram weight of 30 g / m ² to a gram weight of 3000 g / m ² or more. E.g. mats for use in molded or molded composite elements can be manufactured with gram weights up to 8000 g / m ² .

In addition, by making a textile mat, it will be possible to mix paper wool, binders (synthetic fibers or organic binders), flax or hemp shives, wood fibers or to mix fire-resistant components by producing insulating mats with fireproof properties. Thus, refractory materials such as salts such as disodium borohydride (borax) and boric acid, aluminum hydroxide, ammonium phosphate, ammonium sulfate, and others, e.g., in amounts of 015% to the total weight of the mat may be added to the fabric mats formed.

By producing textile mats in air form, these products can be used as insulation mats to replace mineral wool and glass wool insulation mats. In addition, shaped textile mats can be used as building boards, as a substitute for fibreboard and particleboard by adding shives, binders and press formed textile mats.

The textile mat produced by the process of the invention may comprise up to 100% of flax or hemp fibers or combinations thereof. Furthermore, textile mats can be made by blending other fibers, which may be organic or inorganic. While it is preferred to manufacture textile fiber mats made from the plant fibers formed by the method of the invention for economic reasons, it will also be possible to use long fiber shaped fibers, so-called tow fibers.

Thus, it will be possible to use tow fibers of the textile industry originating from flax and hemp and where the tow, for example in hammer mills, is shortened to the desired fiber length prior to shaping the textile mat.

The fibers that can be used in the method of the present invention can have different compositions:

- shortened fibers, whether or not soaked, consisting of purified flax and / or hemp fiber to which up to 10% shives are added,

- truncated fibers which are soaked or not soaked, initially as single fibers, consisting of flax and / or hemp fibers mixed with flax and / or hemp shives containing up to 90% shives,

- short fibers which are soaked or not soaked, initially as bundles of fibers and shives of flax and / or hemp,

- shives separated by cleaning of flax and / or hemp, or a dust fraction separated by cleaning consisting of very short fibers together with shives.

The quality of the fibers will depend on the desired properties of the formed end product. According to a preferred method of producing textile mats which are suitable as insulating mats, the plant stems are dried to a moisture (water content) of between 10 and 16%. Then there are stems, · · '·· • * 1' ·· * 9 • - * ♦ * - · · ·; ·? · ·

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99 so that the main part is screeded and shortened in the hammer mill so that the fibers preferably have a length between 3 to 20 mm, where the fibers will have an average length between 4 to 15 mm. This is preferably done using a coarse sifter. Then the fibers are dry formed, which preferably takes place using a forming head located above the vacuum suction box, between which a forming wire is placed, on which the fibers are deposited and maintained by vacuum. Settling and solidification takes place by compacting together with the addition of 0-5% binder. Alternatively, up to 50% binder can be used if there are particularly high control requirements for the shaped textile mat.

The textile mat formed by the method of the invention need not be a flat sheet or sheet or web. This makes it possible to carry out the final treatment at the same time as settling or solidification or in direct connection with the solidification between the fiber bonds.

Thus, it will be possible to impart a spatial shape to the textile mat, e.g. a wave shape, which makes it suitable as reinforcing fibers in a composite board, eg a high strength composite board or a formable composite board. Alternatively, the textile mat may be shaped to take the form of a desired wrapper, such as a crate or bowl. Thus, a textile mat that is stable in shape and strength could be used in the manufacture of packaging products or pots for plants. Plant containers may be shaped by a pressing operation in direct connection with the compaction step.

The method and textile mat according to the invention will be described in more detail by means of the following examples.

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DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Example 1

This example illustrates a method of making a fibrous linen mat for use as insulating mats as a substitute for mineral wool. Flax straw, both oil and fiber, as well as hemp, may be used. The best fibers are obtained from a spinning flax which is well soaked and possibly hemp if it is sufficiently soaked. The following is an example of production of textile mats for insulation purposes based on spinning flax:

The stalks of flax are laid in the miter and after about 10 days in the field the seeds are harvested with the usual grain harvester. Here the straw lies in rows / miter and is steeped. The dipping process can be monitored by recording the change in color of the straw. The desired degree of steeping was achieved when the straw / fiber color turned light gray. It may be necessary to reverse the miter to ensure uniform turning.

The soaking process is closely monitored and samples are taken daily to see how far the soaking process has progressed in hand-strewed straw.

Once the desired color change has occurred, the straw is harvested by compressing it into bales, preferably round bales, which normally takes place at a dry matter content of about 85% in straw (15% water).

The packages are transported to the factory where they are dried to 12% water content. After drying, the bale is unfolded / cut and flax straw is fed to a hammer mill for scouring. The mill is »» * · »·

The fibrous mass, which now consists of fibers and wood parts / shives, is conveyed via a cyclone to a rotary screener (coarse screen) where the shives are separated together with the dust. The present coarse wool fiber mass has an average length of about 4-15 mm. However, some fibers are longer. The length of the fibers can be adjusted to some extent by controlling the coarse screen (sifter) on the hammer mill and by adjusting the screen by subsequent screening on the rotary screen. Normally the fibers are thoroughly cleaned to a 5% shiv content. Further cleaning results in a relatively greater loss of fibers.

The cleaned fibrous meat is conveyed through pipes to a plant (plant) for the production of mats or coverings where dry forming takes place. This is done, for example, by using a molding head located above the vacuum suction box, where a molding mesh is placed between them, on which the fibers are deposited and held under vacuum. The device is configured to form a textile mat at a desired height. This is controlled by the rate at which the fiber is fed through the fiber feeder (bale shredder) through the transport discharge fan to the forming head. At the same time, the feed rate on the mesh is regulated.

If it is desired to manufacture mats for use as insulation of ceilings and walls, etc., the height of the textile mat is adjusted to, for example, 200 mm with a desired gram weight of, for example, 3000 g / m ² . For certain insulation purposes, the lightest mat is desired and under these conditions the textile mat is not reinforced or pressed.

If it is desired to produce a textile mat that is stronger or more compact and possibly has a lower height, this is accomplished by controlling the degree of reinforcement of the fibrous carpet before, after or during eventual curing, which is preferably carried out in an oven.

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During the course of the process, where the fibers fall on the forming mesh and move forward, 2-3% of the binder is added, eg in the form of a secondary component consisting of polyethylene and polypropylene. Curing of the textile mat is accomplished by heat treatment in an oven at about 145 ° C or another temperature depending on the type of binder, i.e. the textile mat is guided through the forming mesh through the oven at the desired temperature.

Optionally, fire retardants such as salts such as disodium borohydride (borax) (0-15%), boric acid (0-15%), aluminum hydroxide (0-15%) or sodium hydroxide (0-15%) are added during this process (before curing in the furnace). other. These salts may fall down into the fibers or are sprayed onto the fibers.

After curing, the textile mat is rolled by a roll and is wrapped or cut to shape. During this process, the textile mat can be fully rolled together. When unpacked, the mat reaches the same size and volume as before the roll, since the mat is inflated.

Finished textile mat is soft and supple or supple. Depending on the degree of soaking, the color will be yellowish / light gray to dark gray. The textile mat could be made cheaper than conventional needle-carded mats or coverings. The mat has a thermal insulation equivalent to a lambda value of -0.40. The textile mat immediately repels moisture due to its hydrophobic properties, but the mat is still capable of absorbing and delivering moisture to the environment.

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Example 2.

This example illustrates a method of making a textile mat based on linen cellulose for use in the cosmetic industry, such as absorbent paper or as cover papers.

The fibers are formed as described in Example 1 above before forming the carpets or mats. The degree of steeping can range from completely non-soaked to heavily soaked fibers. The wool fibers now cleaned are subjected to wet pulverizing. This can take place by boiling in water under pressure or by boiling in an extruder. The pretreatment is carried out with or without the addition of comminution or pulping chemicals such as caustic soda (sodium hydroxide). Processing in the extruder can proceed at a relatively high level of the total dry matter content, about 10%, but also at a lower dry matter percentage.

If an extrusion treatment is used, the impregnation of the fibers takes place simultaneously with the cutting or shearing of the fibrous mass. After extrusion, the fibrous mass is conveyed to the container and cooked for about 1 hour at a temperature of about 100 ° C. Further, the fiber is cleaned of sugar and lignin residues. The fibrous mass now consists of a homogeneous distribution of the fibers in the slurry containing 0-5% of the impurities originally originating from the shives. These can be cleaned by vortex cleaning in a hydrocyclone. Optionally, the fiber can be refined prior to purification in the hydrocyclone if fibrillation is desired. For example, a disc refiner or cleaner, a "wide-angle" refiner or a cutter can be used.

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After pulping, flax pulp or pulp consists of almost pure cellulose containing 80-95% cellulose. The total dry matter content is between 7- 5-90%. The fiber length distribution was measured by a Bayer McNett index between 200-300, preferably between 240-280. The strength of the flax cellulose was measured in Nm / m ² / cm ² and was about 100-160 or more.

If bleached pulp is desired, 2% peroxide may be added to achieve a degree of fungi of about 75.

The final fiber is dried and defibrated in a hammer mill if it is desired that the fibers be fully fiberized before being formed into a textile mat / covering. This molding takes place as described in Example 1, but depending on the application, a thinner mat is produced, such as for use in the form of absorbent paper used as tissue paper, and the like. (about 70 to about 200 g / m ² ). A very thin mat (20 g / m ² ) can be used as a backing paper by admixing about 15% or less hydrophobic binders.

Even without pulp bleaching, the products are very bright or light, from light gray to whitish.

Example 3.

This example illustrates a method of making molded blends (compositions) based on a hemp or linen mat.

As a basis for achieving a high strength fiber board, relatively uncoated fibers, possibly mixed with shives, can be used. The strength of the fibers in the non-soaked to slightly soaked fibers is greater. <RTIgt; 9 </RTI> 9

99 than heavily soaked fibers. Flax and hemp will be a suitable raw material for high fiber strength. Sheaves cleaned from shives could also be used for mixtures corresponding to chipboard.

The textile mat is made as described in Example 1 above before forming the respective mat. A mat of desired height and gram weight, e.g. 300 g / m ^{2, is made} . By using relatively non-soaked flax or hemp, the mat is very stiff and hard. The content of the shives can be adjusted as desired. The higher the content, the stiffer the mat before pressing (shaping).

During the manufacture of the textile mat, a so-called plant fiber compatibilizer (stiffener) is sprayed onto it, i.e. a chemical modification containing eg isocyanate (about 1-2%) to ensure that the hydrophobic fibers obtain a surface compatible with traditional binders such as For example, formaldehyde etc. is used as a binder in a fiber board. EVA (evanyl acetate) or natural binders may also be used instead of formaldehyde addition.

In addition, the fibers are sized prior to, during or immediately after the mat is made or immediately after heat, vacuum or autoclave pressing, as in traditional methods of making fibreboard and particle board.

Compressed compounds based on hemp or flax fiber have strength at the level of hard masonite (a variety of chloritoid).

If it is desired to produce highly stiffened compounds, a greater proportion of organic binders are used as synthetic polymers containing thermoplastics and thermosetting plastics (thermosets) such as polypropylene, polyacetate and polyester. Roughly 50% binder is added. The addition of the binder takes place during the manufacture of the mat and is then pressed under high pressure into the desired shapes. The shaping proceeds as described in Example I.

Highly stiffened compositions or compositions have glass fiber strength and are useful as a substitute for the plastic and ski fibers of the compound.

Claims (11)

PATENT CLAIMS CLAIMS 1. A method of making a textile mat using plant fibers, comprising the steps of harvesting plants by trimming followed by threshing, wherein the stalks of plants are wholly or partially soaked and then dried to provide desirable moisture and then truncated and separated for obtaining a fibrous mass comprising mainly single fibers having lengths within a desired interval of between 0.1 to 30 mm, wherein the spinning (fibrillation) is carried out in conjunction with shortening, wherein the textile mat is dry-formed, whereby the fibers are randomly oriented and where the carpet is fixed when at least partially inter-fiber bonds are formed between the individual fibers, since they are more or less fibrillated. Method according to claim 1, characterized in that the pretreatment comprises shortening the fibers to a length of between 3 and 20 mm and in particular between 4 and 15 mm. Method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the fibers are partially soaked in the field and are then subjected to further controlled soaking in water containing enzymes before being shortened. Method according to any preceding claim, characterized in that the interfiber bonds are formed when organic binders, synthetic organic binders or natural binders are applied. “CHANGED SHEET” ··· · · «· ♦ · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · 9 ························· The method of any preceding claim, wherein the fibers are selected from either flax or hemp fibers. Method according to any preceding claim, characterized in that the stalks are scrubbed in a hammer mill and shortened to a desired length, that the fibers within the desired length interval are separated using a rotary coarse screen or sifter, that said fraction of fibers is dry-formed into the respective by blowing fibers into a forming head positioned above the forming mesh. Method according to any preceding claim, characterized in that the formed mat is fixed by adding 0-50% binder. Method according to any preceding claim, characterized in that the formed shaped mat comprises 0 to 10% shives. A method according to claim 1, characterized in that the shortening and separation of the fibers is carried out dry and that the pretreatment comprises fiberising (wetting) the fibers when the fibers are cooked in pure water under pressure or cooked in an extruder. that they are treated chemically, for example by adding a base, that they are washed and that they are dried before the fibers formed are dry formed. A textile mat produced by the method of any preceding claim, characterized in that it is a "CHANGED IST" nonwoven mat. B «* · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · · And is manufactured with thicknesses between 2 and 30 mm and a gram weight between 30 and 8000 g / m ² . Use of a textile mat produced by the process of any one of claims 1-9 as an insulating mat, as an absorbent mat, as an element in a molded composite product or as an element in a heavily reinforced composite product.